Meet Darlene's Gender-Creative Child From The "Roseanne" Reboot
The Connor household is getting even more crowded: Next year, when ABC reboots Roseanne Darlene's youngest child, Mark, will be "gender-creative,"
“Sensitive and bright, Mark occasionally likes to wear girls’ clothing,” according to the casting notice. He'll be played by by newcomer Ames McNamara.
“It’s inspiring to see so much talent at such a young age. Some people are born with abilities beyond their years. Ames is one of those people," Sara Gilbert, a.k.a. Darlene, told TV Line.
Mark's name is an homage to Glenn Quinn, who played David's (Johnny Galecki) older brother, Mark, on the original run of Roseanne. Quinn died from from a heroin overdose in 2002.
Mark joins 14-year old sister Harris, who Darlene gave birth to in the final season of the sitcom. The role of teenage Harris has yet to be cast.
The eight-episode series will reunite most of the original stars including Roseanne Barr, John Goodman, Sara Gilbert, and Laurie Metcalf. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Barr will executive produce, along with Tom Werner and Bruce Helford, who co-produced the show during its original run from 1988 to 1997.
Roseanne was notable for bringing broader LGBT representations to television: Both Roseanne Conner’s mother, Beverly (Estelle Parsons) and her friend Nancy (Sandra Bernhard) came out as lesbians during its run. The show also aired one of the first same-sex kisses in prime time—between Barr and actress Mariel Hemingway—and, in Season 8, Roseanne’s former boss Leon (Martin Mull) married his boyfriend, Scott (Fred Willard).
The new season of Roseanne is scheduled to premiere in 2018.
